Get to know No. 1: Florida has the key ingredients: momentum, experience and leadership. And it's one of the top defensive teams in the country. In a 26-game winning streak that culminated in SEC championship, the Gators held all but three opponents to fewer than 70 points and rank in the top five of defensive efficiency. Their balanced, veteran roster is reminiscent of another Gators team — the one that won a second straight championship in 2007.

Cinderella: No. 12 Stephen F. Austin. Only Wichita State owns a longer winning streak than the 28-game roll of the Lumberjacks, who are 31-2. The Southland tournament champions rank in the top 50 in scoring with 76.5 points per game. First-year coach Brad Underwood made four NCAA appearances in six seasons as a Kansas State assistant.

Best first-round matchup: No. 12 Stephen F. Austin vs. No. 5 VCU. Defensive gurus will be drooling. Who wouldn't want to see VCU's full-court "havoc" go against the Lumberjacks' half-court defense, which will have an equally cool nickname by the end of the tournament? Losing 3-point ace Melvin Johnson to a knee injury makes the Rams vulnerable.

The buzz: Kansas' fate could be determined by whether freshman Joel Embiid returns from a back injury. The Jayhawks gave up more than 90 points in their last two losses. … No. 8 Colorado has lost eight of 17 games since star point guard Spencer Dinwiddie was lost for the season with a knee injury. … Dayton coach Archie Miller joins his brother Sean, Arizona's coach, in the field.